Browsing Area Book of the Week, March 4, 2013.

God is Not One: the eight rival religions that run the world—and why their differences matter by Stephen Prothero.  Library Call Number: BL80.3.P76 2010.

 

          Prothero sets out with the interesting premise that religions are not all pointed in the same direction—at the same omniscient, omnipotent Being—but are, on the contrary, beginning at different philosophical points and experiences of faith and order, and expanding from there.  By contrasting their differences, he hopes to paint a fuller picture of different cultures and what they seek in their faith.  The book is controversial, especially in the inclusion of Confucianism—which can be argued is a philosophy and not a faith—and atheism, which is shown only at its furthest extreme.  Still, the author has written an illuminating book with plenty to ponder.  Readers may come away from the book with a feeling that, like the blind men with the elephant, they have not yet reached a full comprehension of what God means.  They may, however, find a larger appreciation of the beliefs of others.